


New Expectations

by tacosandflowers



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Established Relationship, Extreme Sports, F/M, Fluff, Pregnancy, whitewater kayaking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-26
Updated: 2015-07-26
Packaged: 2018-04-11 06:09:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4424309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tacosandflowers/pseuds/tacosandflowers
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Clarke participates in the Green Race a few weeks after finding out she's pregnant, which she and Bellamy have been keeping quiet. Well, Clarke is better at keeping it quiet than Bellamy, but what can you do? </p><p>A timestamp to "The Odds are Good" in honor of crystalkei's birthday.</p>
            </blockquote>





	New Expectations

**Author's Note:**

  * For [crystalkei](https://archiveofourown.org/users/crystalkei/gifts).



> Welcome back to the Odds universe! This fic is a birthday gift to the lovely crystalkei, who inspired the story with her brilliant ideas and gave me guidance in how to write pregnancy. Seriously, if you need help writing pregnancy, baby!fic, or kid!fic, she's your girl. If I got anything wrong, it's my own fault. Enjoy!

Ever since Clarke moved to Arkville, she’s competed in the Green Race. Held every year in the late fall, the race draws kayakers from around the US, and some from around the world, who come to try for the fastest time on the Green River Narrows. It’s one of the most anticipated events of the year.

 

As one of the better female kayakers in the world, Clarke usually either wins the race in the female category, or places in the top three. She’s just on the water enough, and runs the Green enough, that she knows how to run it quickly and efficiently, and every year she enters the race with confidence.

 

This year, however, she’s not so sure. Clarke hasn’t been on the Green as much in the weeks leading up to the race as she normally is, because she hasn’t been feeling physically like she has every other year.

 

Because Clarke is eight weeks pregnant.

 

“Are you sure you want to do the race this year?” Bellamy had asked her a few weeks before, when they first found out.

 

“Yes,” she’d said. They’d been sitting on the porch swing of their house, having coffee—well, Clarke was having herbal tea—after Clarke finished with what had since become a standard morning routine of nausea with occasional vomiting. “All of the badass kayaker moms I know paddled through their pregnancies until they couldn’t fit in their boats anymore. I intend to do the same.”

 

“I know,” Bellamy had said, and he did, because they’d talked about this before, when they’d decided to start trying. Clarke had drawn one line—she wasn’t running anything harder than the Green—but that didn’t mean Bellamy wasn’t watching her like a hawk.

 

“I love the Green Race,” Clarke had said. “I don’t care if I’m slow. Besides, it’s not like anyone knows I’m pregnant yet. It would be pretty weird if I _didn’t_ race the Green, you know?”   

 

Bellamy had shrugged. “I guess.” If Bellamy had his way, everyone would know Clarke was pregnant, but Clarke knows he respects her desire to wait to announce it until she’s through the first trimester.

 

A smile had passed over Clarke’s face. “Besides, I think it would be kind of cool, to race the Green with the baby. Once she’s here, she won’t be able to run the Green until she’s probably… sixteen?” Clarke liked to refer to the baby as a girl even though they didn’t yet know the gender.

 

Bellamy’s face had gotten very protective and paranoid all of a sudden. “You want our kid running the Green at sixteen? That’s too young.”

 

Clarke had smiled sweetly. “You were seventeen when you first ran it. She’ll want to beat daddy.”

 

“If she likes kayaking, I’d feel better if she saved her first Green run until… after college? Her thirtieth birthday? Or she might hate kayaking and want to be a ballerina,” Bellamy had replied. “Which is honestly a much safer activity. Or she might be a he.”

 

“And he might want to be a ballerina, too,” Clarke had said. They’d started doing this sometimes, playing with ideas of what their kid might be like, as the reality of what lay ahead of them began to sink in.

 

“Whatever he or she is like,” Bellamy had said, “if you want to race the Green while you’re pregnant, I’ll support you. That doesn’t mean I won’t worry like hell that you’re feeling up to it and that everything goes well, though.”

 

“You worry like hell about everything I do now,” Clarke had replied.

 

He’d grabbed her hand and squeezed it. “I know. I’m allowed to, though. It’s pretty much the most legit reason to worry like hell.”

 

Luckily, Bellamy isn’t too overbearing. But he has become more attentive with Clarke these days, and she smiles as she thinks of this at the put-in for the Green on the day of the race, getting reading to launch her boat into the water. The race isn’t head-to-head, but rather a timed event where paddlers are sent off by the starting timers at one minute intervals, with the timers at the finish line clocking their times and ranking them all in a spreadsheet at the end. The results are announced at a big party near the take-out after everyone gets off the water.

 

Bellamy was scheduled to start at least thirty racers before Clarke, and they’d walked down together to the put-in along with the other racers. He’d insisted on carrying her paddle down for her, which was hilarious, because compared to the weight of the kayak and all the gear inside it, the paddle was nothing. But Bellamy likes to do little things for her, she knows, because he’s excited and nervous about the pregnancy, and he feels guilty seeing her feel ill every morning, and he’s just… Bellamy.

 

And he can’t even really observe some of the other physical changes she’s going through. She thinks this is typical of most people whose partners are pregnant. They understand morning sickness, and get the basics of the facts like her breasts being incredibly tender. Bellamy is convinced they’re getting bigger already, which she’s not so sure of, but he insists he’s right as the self-proclaimed expert when it comes to her breasts. There’s also the fact that she’s more tired than usual. But there are other things she’s going through that are harder to explain.

 

 _Like the fact that it’s only going to get harder to squeeze my ass into this kayak_ , she thinks to herself as she gets settled into the close-fitting seat of her boat at the put-in, waiting for her turn to race. Her body hasn’t yet started to change that much in outward appearance, it’s not like her ass is really bigger yet, but she feels so sensitive to everything. Overall, she just feels _different_. She supposes she’s not going to feel normal again for a while now, until after the baby is born, so she might as well get used to it. She’s been telling patients about symptoms like these for years. But actually feeling them? Well, that’s a different story.

 

She can still run the Green, though. Even if she hasn’t been feeling up to dawn patrol much lately. She runs her hand briefly across her midsection after she pulls her sprayskirt onto her boat and smiles and thinks, _I don’t know what you’ll be like, baby, but your dad and I love this river, and we love you, and I’m happy you’re here with me._ _Let’s just enjoy the ride and not worry about the time._

 

“Clarke Griffin! You’re on deck!” a race volunteer shouts from the starting line.

 

Clarke launches into the water, wiggles her hips to get the feel for how her body will be today—every day is a new adventure, now, she’s finding—and heads downstream. Her blood is already singing through her veins as she feels the rush of river around her.

 

 _Well, maybe we can go a little fast,_ she thinks with a smile _._

**

 

After Bellamy finishes his race run, he waits for Clarke at the finish line, standing behind the timers—Octavia and Monty, who had both volunteered to help with the race. He knows it will be at least thirty minutes before Clarke shows up, but he can’t do anything other than sit and fidget. Naturally, this drives Octavia crazy.

 

“You need to chill out, Bell,” she says after about ten minutes as she clocks in a finisher.

 

“I’m fine,” he says.

 

“Yeah right,” Octavia replies. “You’re bouncing your leg like you’re stuck in detention. May I remind you that you’re at the Green Race, which you love, and instead of doing useful race volunteer things after your run like you normally do, you’re just sitting here being annoying.”

 

“I’m waiting for Clarke to finish,” he says, as if this explains everything.

 

It kind of does. Octavia looks over her shoulder at Bellamy, and then at Monty, who is watching the next racer come down the last drop, and then back at Bellamy. They’ve told Octavia that Clarke is pregnant—she’d figured out on her own, actually, because they were “both acting like total weirdos”—and besides, Octavia is family. But nobody else knows yet, and they plan to keep it that way until things are further along.

 

“You guys talked about this,” Octavia says quietly as she gives Bellamy a meaningful look, and they have. Clarke wants to keep kayaking like normal until she can’t anymore, and he supports that. So what if he’s a little more protective than usual on the river? His wife may be one of the best female paddlers in the world, and her self-sufficiency is one of the things he respects most about her, but it’s more than just her in the boat now. He’s allowed to hover.

 

“I still want to be here when she finishes,” Bellamy replies.

 

Octavia sighs and rolls her eyes. “I knew you were going to be like this.”

 

Bellamy gives her a glare that says, _what’s that supposed to mean?_

 

“What are you guys talking about?” Monty asks after they clock in another finisher.

 

“Nothing,” Bellamy grumbles, although he is very tempted to just explain everything to Monty so he can have a normal conversation with his sister and tell her to shove it.

 

He is very tempted to tell everyone, really. He understands why he can’t, of course, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t almost let it slip all the time. Just the other day he’d nearly told Miller when they were doing work in a house they were finishing. He’d seen a paint swatch one of the owners brought by that was the perfect shade of light yellow for a baby’s room, and he’d nearly said that out loud before catching himself. So far he’s managing to keep it together. Barely.

 

It’s hard though, because it’s pretty much all he can think about. He’s going to be a _dad_. He’s known for years that he wants to have kids with Clarke, but now that it’s actually happening, the idea has gone from abstract to real and he’s a ridiculous mix of excited and terrified. They’d decided to start trying just after their first wedding anniversary. They were in the final eddy at the end of an expedition on the Stikine River in Canada—one of the big trips Clarke had always wanted to do—when she’d looked over at him with a thoughtful look on her face and said, “We should talk about something.”

 

The minute they’d had some privacy from the rest of the group—not easy, given that they were traveling like usual with Miller and Wick and several others—Clarke hadn’t been able to contain her mysterious smile any longer.

 

“I think we should start trying to have a baby,” she’d said.

 

His heart had swelled and his stomach had dropped, because _holy shit_ , and also _yes._

“Yeah?” he’d asked, unable to keep a massive grin from spreading across his face.

 

“Yeah,” she’d said, grinning back. “I don’t know, something about finishing the expedition today, it was like this milestone. We’ve run a lot of rivers in the last few years, we’ve accomplished a lot of our adventure goals. And now that we’ve done this one, I don’t know, I was in the eddy and it just suddenly hit me that we could try for a new adventure. Except instead of a river it could be the crazy, life-changing, kids-having adventure.”

 

He’d pulled her close and kissed her hair and slid his hands under her shirt around her waist—slim and muscular from her kayaking, but maybe not for much longer, if this worked. The idea of Clarke pregnant with his child was definitely a turn-on. “I’m game,” he’d said, sliding his hands higher. “Can we start now? As in right this moment?”

 

And they had. They were camping in the woods in the middle of nowhere, but they did love their outdoor sex.

 

Bellamy loved the trying part. There was something about having sex with Clarke when they were trying to make a baby that gave it a new level of meaning, something he’d never understood was possible until they’d started trying. And they’d talked about it more, too, because there were serious things they needed to discuss. As a family doctor, Clarke was well-versed in the risks of pregnancy and things that could go wrong, as well as the chances that it might be difficult or impossible for them to get pregnant, and they talked about what they would do in a variety of potential situations.

 

It hadn’t happened immediately. Clarke had assured him that this was completely normal, that they’d really just started trying, and should just relax and be patient and keep trying (More sex? Fine with him). But he could sense her disappointment each time she told him she got her period again, and he’d felt it too. He knew that they would just keep trying, and fate would deal them whatever was meant to be, and they would handle whatever that was together.

 

And then, after months of trying, it had happened. Clarke missed her period, and once it had been long enough that she was pretty sure it wasn’t just late, she’d taken a test at work and called him at the job site. He’d had to go out into the woods behind the house and freak out where Miller and Murphy couldn’t see him. That had been a few weeks ago, and now she was eight weeks along.

 

“Quit daydreaming, dummy,” Octavia says, jarring him out of his reverie. “Your wife’s headed for the finish line.”

 

And she is. Bellamy watches as her lime green kayak speeds towards the rock marking the finish and his heart nearly bursts as he sees the look of joy on her face as she finishes the race. Her breath is quick from the exertion and her cheeks are pink and he loves her like crazy in that moment, and also swears he can see a special glow about her. She claims that he’s imagining things and that’s her professional medical opinion, but he thinks she’s wrong. She’s totally glowing, and it’s because she’s got his kid inside her (and the Green too, he supposes). Yeah, he’s pretty proud of himself.

 

“Hi,” she says as she climbs out of her kayak and joins him on the rock.

 

“Hey gorgeous,” he says.

 

“You’re a cheeseball,” she replies.

 

“But you are,” he insists.

 

She just shakes her head. She’s still smiling, though.

 

“How did that feel?” he continues.

 

“Good,” she replies. “Really good, actually.” She looks around to see who might be listening. “I think I went faster than I thought I would.”

 

“You were definitely fast,” Octavia says. “I know because I’m holding the stopwatch.”

 

“You’re not supposed to spoil the results, Octavia,” Monty chides.

 

“Whatever, I can tell my sister-in-law that she was fast without spoiling anything,” Octavia replies, winking at Clarke.

 

“Do you want to hang around and volunteer?” Bellamy asks.

 

“Sure,” Clarke replies.

 

“Or we could go if you want to take a nap before the party?”

 

Clarke smiles at him, slightly baffled. “I just told you I wanted to stay and volunteer.”

 

“I know, but I also know you’ve been tired in the afternoons lately, so I threw that big camping mattress in the back of the truck in case you want to lie down.”

 

Clarke’s eyes fill with gratitude. “You did? Bellamy, you are so sweet.”

 

“You guys are too much, get out of here,” Octavia says in a teasing tone. “You’re distracting us from our very important finish line job.”

 

“Let’s help out a little bit and then go nap,” Clarke says.

 

“Sounds good to me,” Bellamy replies, and they head off to find something to do.

 

 

**

 

 

It turns out the nap is a good idea. Clarke isn’t sure how she would have found the energy for the party without it. They’d driven over to the party spot early and set up a sleeping spot in the back of the truck. Bellamy had even put the cap on the back the night before, so she had a nice, cozy place to sleep. She fell asleep almost immediately and woke up to the sounds of everyone arriving from the river, ready for the evening’s events.

 

The race party is fun and crazy as usual, with a local barbecue joint providing the food and a local brewery providing the beer. Clarke and Bellamy know nearly everyone there, and it’s fun to catch up with their friends from out of town and laugh at everyone’s antics. It is a bit strange observing it all sober for the first time, Clarke thinks, because she’s used to drinking plenty of beer at the race party, embracing the celebratory atmosphere.

 

She still has fun, though. Instead of beer, she has a few bottles of sparkling water in the truck, which she’s been pouring into her plastic cup and adding a slice of the lime Bellamy had remembered to bring because he knows she likes it. She sips on her water and walks around and has to pee constantly, both from the water and the fact that she just has to pee more these days because that’s another fun part of being pregnant.

 

Everyone is just hanging out, socializing, while they wait for the race results to be announced. She’s standing near the beer tent when Finn walks up, carrying two beers. It’s been a long time since things ended with her and Finn, so the weirdness has mostly faded and they’re on decently friendly terms when they see each other at things like this. Bellamy thinks Finn tries to flirt with her, but she doesn’t see it. Bellamy will typically say something along the lines of “What kind of moron thinks it’s okay to flirt with other people’s wives? If I didn’t already have you shackled to me by marriage I would deck that asshole,” and she would respond that Finn flirted with everyone and everything, including inanimate objects, and that Bellamy was reading too much into it.

 

So she’s not surprised when Finn walks up with his trademark grin, tossing his hair over his shoulder like he’s in a shampoo commercial, and wants to hang out for a chat.

 

“Hey Clarke,” he says, oozing his typical charm. “Good race today?”

 

Clarke shrugs. “Yeah, I felt pretty good, I guess. We won’t really know until they announce the results though, right?”

 

“Totally,” Finn says, and then tries to hand one of his cups to her. “Here, I got you a beer.”

 

“Oh, uh,” Clarke says, feeling awkward suddenly, and not sure what to say. She looks around for her cup of sparkling water, which she must have set down somewhere. “That’s fine, I already have one, I just need to find my cup.”

 

“Come on, Clarke, I insist. Let’s have a beer, we’re friends, right?”

 

“That’s really nice of you, Finn,” Clarke says. “But I honestly don’t need—“

 

Clarke stops talking because at that moment Bellamy walks up and bumps into Finn in what he probably thinks is a good impression of an accident but is actually really obvious, causing Finn to drop the beer he’s holding out to Clarke.

 

“Oops,” Bellamy says, not sounding very remorseful. “Sorry bout that, Collins.”

 

“Hey man!” Finn says, annoyed. “That was for Clarke.”

 

“Clarke doesn’t want a beer,” Bellamy says.

 

Clarke can’t decide if she wants to laugh or groan as the scene unfolds before her.

 

“We’re at a kayaking party, Clarke always wants a beer,” Finn says matter-of-factly.

 

“Not this time,” Bellamy says, and there’s a warning tone in his voice as he shifts further into protector mode.

 

Finn looks at Clarke. “You sure?” he asks. “I know you guys are married and all, but it’s not like you to let anyone speak for you.”

 

Bellamy folds his arms across his chest, Clarke can tell he’s getting more and more irritated. She gives him a warning look before turning back to Finn.

 

“I actually don’t want a beer tonight, Finn, but thank you for the offer,” she says, figuring the only way to get out of this situation is to be very direct. Finn can be almost intentionally obtuse at times.

 

“Did you quit drinking or something?” Finn asks, a look of extreme confusion on his face. “You’re not getting old and boring on us, are you? You love beer!”

 

“Dude, give it a rest,” Bellamy says. “She _can’t_ drink, so stop giving her shit about it and respect that she said no thanks.”

 

“She _can’t_ drink?” Finn asks, and Clarke watches as his face goes from confusion to comprehension, and his eyebrows shoot up. “Holy shit. Are you _pregnant_?”

 

“Uh—“ Clarke begins.

 

“Yeah, she is, bud, so back off,” Bellamy says. His chest is all puffed up now as he leans towards Finn to get his message across.  

 

“Dammit, Bellamy,” Clarke says. She knows he’s having trouble keeping it to himself, but to let it slip in front of Finn of all people? It’s kind of funny, she supposes.

 

“I’m sorry babe, but he was ready to pour a beer down your throat,” Bellamy grumbles, looking contrite.

 

She sighs and squeezes his arm, because he’s really just being protective. She turns to Finn. “Look, it’s still early days yet, so we haven’t told anyone. Can you please keep this a secret? ”

 

Finn still looks shell-shocked. “I—yeah, of course I can, for sure.”

 

Bellamy gives him a look that says _you fucking better_.

 

“Thanks Finn,” Clarke says.

 

“I’m gonna go help Monroe with the fire,” Finn says, clearly feeling awkward now. “That’s, uh, really cool, you guys.” He reaches for Bellamy’s hand and says, “Congratulations man, seriously.”

 

Bellamy smirks as he shakes Finn’s hand and says “Thanks,” and Clarke can see that he’s actually enjoying this exchange now. Proud bastard.

 

Finn pulls Clarke in for a quick hug. “Congrats Clarke, I’m really happy for you.”

 

And then he’s floating off towards the fire.

 

Bellamy has a guilty look on his face, and is about to say something when Raven walks up.

 

“Congrats for what?” she asks. “Why is Collins hugging on your wife, Blake? And did I see you knock a beer out of his hand?”

 

It’s just begun to dawn on Clarke that Finn is the second person to find out that she’s pregnant, and now Raven asking her this question makes her feel extremely guilty, because Raven is one of her best friends, and she lives with Octavia, who already knows. It seems ridiculously unfair that Finn knows and Raven doesn’t.

 

Bellamy is looking at Clarke, waiting for her to tell him how to answer that question, and Clarke sighs, because nobody told her that this whole _telling and not telling people you’re pregnant_ thing would be so ridiculous.

 

“Raven, there’s something you should know,” Clarke says. “We didn’t tell you before because it’s still really early, but, I’m pregnant. Eight weeks.”

 

“Oh my god, I knew it!” Raven exclaims. “I saw you sneaking sparkling water in your truck.” And then her face becomes stormy. “Wait. What in the actual _fuck_ , Clarke? You told Finn you were pregnant before you told _me_?”

 

Raven looks like she’s ready to fight someone.

 

“No!” Clarke cries. “Well, yes, but Raven, I didn’t mean to, at all. Bellamy let it slip when Finn was trying to give me a beer and we had to tell him. I’m so sorry, I did not mean for anyone to know before you. Well, Octavia knows, but that’s it.

 

Raven looks slightly mollified. “You were really going to tell me soon?”

 

“Yes,” Clarke says. “I’m only eight weeks along, so it’s still really new. But I wouldn’t have been able to keep it from you much longer, so this is actually a relief.”

 

Raven turns to Bellamy, her anger fading into humor as she starts laughing at him. “You let it slip to Collins? Good job, _dad_.”

 

Bellamy still looks guilty as he turns back to Clarke. “I’m sorry, he was just being such a moron.”

 

“It’s okay,” Clarke says. “He should keep quiet, you gave him a pretty scary look. And it’s fine if a few people know, I just don’t want everyone in on it yet.”

 

Raven is still laughing at Bellamy. “I can’t believe Octavia managed to keep it from me when we live together and I see her every day, and you couldn’t keep your mouth shut around Collins. Wait, you haven’t even told Miller yet? Fuck, he’s gonna be pissed at you, too!”

 

Bellamy groans and Clarke chuckles. It’s true, Miller will be pissed.

 

Raven pulls Clarke in for an excited hug. “Holy crap, Griffin, you’re pregnant!” she whispers, which Clarke appreciates and also thinks is adorable. She’s really relieved her friend knows now, actually.

 

“It’s crazy, right?” Clarke asks as she hugs Raven back.

 

“So crazy. And so amazingly awesome. I’m so happy for you guys. And you raced the Green today! Have you been feeling like shit or what?” Raven keeps going, rambling because she’s excited.

 

“Mornings have been rough and I’ve been pretty tired,” Clarke admits. “But I felt good out there today.”

 

“That’s good,” Raven says. “Okay we seriously have to have a girls’ night at the house, pronto, to discuss this. Bellamy, you’re not invited.”

 

“Thanks, Raven,” Bellamy replies.

 

“Ugh, I want to talk to you about this all night, but I promised I’d help with the awards ceremony so I gotta run,” Raven says, looking at her watch. “I’ll find you guys later?”

 

Bellamy reaches for Clarke’s hand once Raven is gone. “Seriously, I am so sorry,” he says. “I know you wanted to keep it quiet, and I completely respect that, and I’ll try harder keep quiet, I promise. I’m just really excited.”

 

Clarke feels herself melt inside. “You’re really are, aren’t you?”

 

He smiles sheepishly. “Yeah, I am.”

 

“I am too,” she says, and she pulls him down to her for a kiss. “I’m not mad at you. It was pretty hilarious, actually, seeing that look on Finn’s face. And you can tell Miller, if you want. I know you’re dying to.”

 

He smiles and pulls her to him, sliding his arms around her waist and fitting her back against him as the awards ceremony starts up on the stage. “I love you,” he whispers into her ear.

 

“I love you too,” she says, moving her hands over his where they rest over her abdomen.

 

“You’re totally going to win the Green Race while you’re pregnant, you sexy little badass,” he continues, and his breath in her hair sends a tingle down her spine that makes her think she might need to take him back to their nest in the truck sooner rather than later.  

 

“Hey, we don’t know that yet. I could have been really slow. And honestly? I don’t care. It felt good to just be out there today.”

 

But he’s right. She does win. Octavia and Raven both grin at her knowingly as she accepts her trophy on the podium, and Bellamy sweeps her off the podium and into a kiss that earns them some cheers from the crowd, and she’s filled with joy at the prospect of everything new to come.

 

Everything is going to change, but they’re ready for the adventure.

 

_The End._


End file.
